In 2018, when director Rohit Shetty was casting for Simmba, the third instalment of his cop universe, headlined by the effervescent Ranveer Singh, Shetty was looking for a fresh face to play Singh’s sister. The brief was to find someone who was innocent, yet assertive; versatile, yet restrained. Someone who will hold her own in the character of Aakruti Dave, the rape victim. Shetty recalled the face of a young actor in Laadli, a delightful music video, composed and conceptualised by A.R. Rahman, and sung by Lata Mangeshkar. An ode to the girl child, Laadli became a cult hit and continues to be one of the most widely watched videos on women empowerment. Vaidehi Parashurami, an attractive actress in her 30s, from Marathi cinema, became the face of that video.
But when Simmba’s casting agency called Parashurami, she dismissed it as a prank. Shetty persisted, and a month later Parashurami signed her first Bollywood film, which went on to rake in close to ₹400 crore worldwide.
This story is from the April 16, 2023 edition of THE WEEK India.
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This story is from the April 16, 2023 edition of THE WEEK India.
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